telehealth Archives - Word on Benefits

Saving Money on Employee Benefits is Not as Scary as You Think

Tyler Lloyd

31 Oct 202431 Oct 2024

The 2024 edition of the International Foundation’s Employee Benefits Survey addresses many topics that organizations struggle with to keep benefit cost down for their employees. This includes health care plans and prescription drugs. Prior research conducted in 2024 by the International Foundation […]

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Mental Health and Substance Use Disorders: Employers Improve Response, but Employees Continue to Struggle

Cara McMullin

26 Sep 202426 Sep 2024

New Survey Data Reveals Prevalent Conditions and Increased Telehealth Use As more employees grapple with mental well-being, organizations are challenged with implementing new solutions to support mental health in the workplace. Mental Health and Substance Use Disorder Benefits: 2024 Survey, a new […]

Coronavirus (COVID-19) Employee Benefits HIPAA Insurance Legislative Regulatory

The End of the COVID-19 Emergencies Arrives Early

Amanda Wilke, CEBS

12 Apr 202318 Apr 2023

This blog has been updated with new information from the previous version published on April 12, 2023. President Biden signed H.R. Res. 7 on Monday, April 10, 2023, to end the national emergency (NE) for COVID-19, effective immediately. Although the NE ended […]

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It’s Coming—The End of the COVID-19 Emergencies

Amanda Wilke, CEBS

21 Mar 202321 Mar 2023

After nearly three years, the time has finally come. The Biden administration announced that both the COVID-19 national emergency (NE) and the public health emergency (PHE) will end on May 11, 2023. Now it’s time for employers to prepare to unwind the […]

Communication Coronavirus (COVID-19) Employee Benefits Health Care HIPAA Insurance U.S.

HIPAA Guidance on Postpandemic Audio-Only Telehealth

Amanda Wilke, CEBS

19 Jul 202219 Jul 2022

On June 13, 2022, the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) Office for Civil Rights (OCR) issued guidance on Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act (HIPAA) requirements as they relate to audio-only telehealth. Telehealth technology is typically thought of as […]

Communication Employee Benefits Health Care Insurance U.S.

Telehealth: Lessons From the Pandemic

Kathy Bergstrom, CEBS

13 Jan 202213 Jan 2022

With the Omicron variant causing a spike in COVID-19 cases across the country, access to telehealth visits is likely a benefit that many plan members are continuing to value and use. Nearly two years into a sort of forced experiment with telehealth, […]

Coronavirus (COVID-19) Employee Benefits Health Care U.S.

Changes in Health Care Claims Due to the COVID-19 Pandemic

Justin Held, CEBS

10 Jun 202109 Jun 2021

Over the past year, the International Foundation has surveyed U.S. organizations on three separate occasions to examine the implications of the COVID-19 pandemic. In the most recent edition, respondents were asked about changes in the number of health care claims over this […]

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Legal and Practical Considerations for Virtual Health Care in Canada

Alyssa Hodder, GBA

19 May 202118 May 2021

There’s no question that the pandemic has accelerated the adoption of virtual health care in Canada, but we’re now learning that it’s not just a transitional measure. A panel at our recent virtual conference, Today’s Legal and Legislative Landscape Across Canada, explored […]

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How to Support Workforce Mental Health During the COVID-19 Pandemic

Kathy Bergstrom, CEBS

03 Mar 202102 Mar 2021

Isolation and loneliness. Fear that you or a loved one will be infected with a deadly virus. Anxiety about finances. Stress over child care and school arrangements. During the COVID-19 pandemic, most people in the United States have experienced at least one—if […]

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21 Ways Employers Are Combating Escalating Health Care Costs in 2021

Justin Held, CEBS

27 Jan 202126 Jan 2021

Over the next ten years, health care spending in the United States is projected to increase at an annual rate of 5.4%. In response to the cost escalation, plan sponsors in corporate, multiemployer and public employer environments are looking for ways to […]